City adds ways to get around

Saturday

Oct 26, 2013 at 12:01 AMOct 26, 2013 at 9:57 AM

The new Car2Go car-sharing program set to debut today joins the new CoGo bike-sharing program, pedicabs, planned new bus routes and expanded amenities for cyclists, including extended trails and bike lanes and Downtown lockers.

In the 1960s and 1970s, Downtown office buildings were sometimes designed with no parking included .

The thinking was that parking would be plentiful; with the migration of people and jobs to the suburbs, all one would have to do is just raze vacant buildings Downtown for surface parking.

These days, a growing need for more transportation options in the urban core is a happy problem for Columbus to have.

The new Car2Go car-sharing program set to debut today joins the new CoGo bike-sharing program, pedicabs, planned new bus routes and expanded amenities for cyclists, including extended trails and bike lanes and Downtown lockers.

Metro areas that are sprawling, lack walkable neighborhoods and have downtowns that empty out after 5 p.m. do not lend themselves to getting out of the car.

It’s no accident that these options are arriving on the heels of millions of dollars in Downtown investment that are now paying off.

Meanwhile, the Short North and the Arena District, urban-development success stories for more than a decade, have continued to mature and build on that success.

Those areas have been the focus of the pedicab business, thanks to the arena, the neighborhoods’ many restaurants and the nearby Greater Columbus Convention Center, and are natural markets for bike and car-sharing programs, as well.

Car2Go will start with about 50 cars at launch, and expects to expand to as many as 250 by the end of the year. More information on membership and program details can be found at http://columbus.car2go.com/.

The CoGo bike share program is essentially the same idea, though on two wheels instead of four. With bikes stationed around Downtown and nearby neighborhoods such as German Village, the service’s distinctive black bikes have quickly become a practical but enjoyable way for individuals to get around, and for companies to help get their employees from place to place without the added hassle and expense of operating and parking a car in an urban environment. CoGo’s website is www.cogobikeshare.com.

The best thing about all these new options is that they complement each other, not cannibalize each other. For example, bikes and shared cars could make taking the bus more viable for people whose trips extend beyond the route map of the Central Ohio Transit Authority. COTA, for its part, is planning to re-launch a Downtown Circulator bus next year, a decade after a more-limited version of the Downtown-loop bus route was scuttled because it was losing money.

With more people living Downtown and dropping in for events such as concerts and festivals at the new Columbus Commons park, the idea should gain more traction this time. And maybe some of those people who hop the bus to meet someone for lunch or attend a pops concert will see how convenient it can be to get out of the car — leading to even more users of Columbus’ array of transportation options.